Global broadband comparision (speed and cost of several countries vs. US)

[Svnla]

http://www.businessinsider.com/internet-speeds-in-the-us-and-around-the-world-2014-5


Darn it, Romania is faster than the US?

And I am paying $36 for DSL only (naked) from ATT (6 Mb) so $6 per 1 Mb. Darn bastard. Cable is as expensive. Darn you dualology.

 

[Mayne]

What bothers me the most is...Europeans get better drops in my favourite arpg. I have no conclusive evidence but i'm sure its happening.

 

[OCGuy]

Jesus here we go again.

If land mass and population density aren't taken into account, it isn't really valid.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Meh, one factor is the speed, but total throughput / data capacity/allotment/cap is IMO more important once you go beyond about 15-20mbit....

 

[halik]

Wiring up a country size of rhode island isn't really all that difficult...

 

[BurnItDwn]

Jesus here we go again.

If land mass and population density aren't taken into account, it isn't really valid.

Many cities/places in the USA with high population density do not have access to better/faster internet connections.

The real reason the infrastructure is lacking is that it's not being invested in because of all the local monopolies

 

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

If land mass and population density aren't taken into account, it isn't really valid.

We're not talking about about giving Billy Bob 10Gb/s in the boonies.
We'd just like that in major metropolitan areas at least

Hell, it's one thing that I look forward to if I ever decide to move down south to Austin.

 

[OCGuy]

Many cities/places in the USA with high population density do not have access to better/faster internet connections.

The real reason the infrastructure is lacking is that it's not being invested in because of all the local monopolies

Idk...AT&T is buying DirectTV and will shift their TV users to free up bandwidth for Uverse.

Verizon is putting in its first wave of XLTE tower upgrades as we speak

Google Fiber is pushing local broadband markets

Hughes is now on "Gen 4" of their satellite internet for those in the boondocks


The fact is, if it makes sense financially to lay fiber, it will get done. Fios was basically frozen because of lack of demand.

The majority of people stream Youtube/porntube and surf/read email. None of that requires much bandwidth, so people see no reason to spend more.

 

[smackababy]

The real problem is Singapore is touted as this great place for internet and so is Hong Kong. HK has a population density of 17,024/sq mi and Singapore has a density of 19,562/sq mi. That is for entire countries. Let's not forget Singapore is estimated that 1 in 6 people have over a million dollars in liquid assets. Even higher percentage when you account for net worth.


The average speed in most major cities is far higher than the US average.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Jesus here we go again.

If land mass and population density aren't taken into account, it isn't really valid.

True, but considering the majority of the US population now lives in cities and Google Fiber has shown that speeds of 200+ mbps are possible in urban centers, it's pretty ridiculous that we're still stuck with high-cost, low-bandwidth options throughout most of the country.

 

[OCGuy]

True, but considering the majority of the US population now lives in cities and Google Fiber has shown that speeds of 200+ mbps are possible in urban centers, it's pretty ridiculous that we're still stuck with high-cost, low-bandwidth options throughout most of the country.

Proof of concept doesn't always mean usefulness or practicality though.

 

[smackababy]

True, but considering the majority of the US population now lives in cities and Google Fiber has shown that speeds of 200+ mbps are possible in urban centers, it's pretty ridiculous that we're still stuck with high-cost, low-bandwidth options throughout most of the country.

It isn't that the infrastructure can't exist, is that the investment of multimillion dollars worth of fiber cable isn't a good return on investment (unless you're google and all that bandwidth just gets collected as "anonymous data" to sell to advertising space). Comcast doesn't get that. They only get the $80 or whatever a month you're shelling out with the hopes you also opt in for TV and home phone service.

 

[Wonderful Pork]

It isn't that the infrastructure can't exist, is that the investment of multimillion dollars worth of fiber cable isn't a good return on investment (unless you're google and all that bandwidth just gets collected as "anonymous data" to sell to advertising space). Comcast doesn't get that. They only get the $80 or whatever a month you're shelling out with the hopes you also opt in for TV and home phone service.

That is a fair point - however if it isn't worth it, then why are companies overseas doing it?

 

[smackababy]

That is a fair point - however if it isn't worth it, then why are companies overseas doing it?

I think most of them are building their infrastructure right now or wealthy enough they pay for it.

If a country with very little internet, today, was going to build infrastructure, they would obviously use the best technology. I can't imagine the cost of laying fiber cable is that much higher than laying coaxial cable. So, they take the initial hit on materials up front. In the US, we already have infrastructure built and the costs of replacing it aren't as lucrative.

Singapore is a great example. 1 in 6 people can easily afford high speed internet. Can 1 in 6 Americans afford $100 a month for what is an entertainment luxury? So, Singapore has a huge market waiting to be tapped, America already has a market basically saturated. New development isn't going to add a lot of new customers, just switch from the legacy system to the new one. That isn't (without a large increase in price) going to be worth it for most businesses.

Now, the geographical monopoly doesn't help consumers either. As, there won't be many new services, using the new technologies coming in to compete.

And, we have to come to a point where internet is "good enough" for the majority of people. And it is quickly getting there in the US. The average person won't saturate their 50mb connection, let alone a 1000mb. Sure, it would be nice for people that could use it (most of this forum, I'd assume), but that is a very small market.